PHILADELPHIA – Traumatic brain injury (TBI), including concussion, is not just a major problem in contact sports, it is also more common than is reported in members of the military. Ben Richards, a West Point graduate and Iraq war veteran who will serve as the keynote speaker during Penn’s Mind Your Brain conference on Friday, suffered for years after his combat injury before he received a TBI diagnosis. After a car bomb destroyed his vehicle in 2007, Richards sustained a severe concussion that left him with headaches, fatigue, insomnia and memory loss until his condition was properly identified and treated. He has since become an outspoken voice for the many servicemen, like himself, who have suffered a TBI in combat. He has been profiled in the NY Times and 60 Minutes and will share his story with other brain injury survivors and their families at this year’s Mind Your Brain conference.
This one-day free event will also share research, insights, and therapies from the Philadelphia Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center’s polytrauma/TBI rehabilitation program, and tips for exercise after a neuromuscular injury from retired Army Major and founder of the Fighting Back program, Scott Dillman. A survivor’s panel including Penn Medicine patients and a research panel featuring scientists, clinicians and neuroscience and brain injury thought leaders from Penn’s Center for Brain Injury and Repair will also be part of the day.
| WHERE: |
Smilow Center for Translational Research
3400 Civic Center Blvd., Philadelphia, PA 19104 |
WHEN: |
Friday, March 4, 2016, 8 A.M. to 3 P.M.
Timeline:
8:00 A.M. Registration
9:00 am M. Sean Grady, MD, chair of Neurosurgery
Candace Gantt, TBI survivor and conference organizer
9:15 Keynote speaker: Major Ben Richards
10:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
Breakout Sessions including:
Caring and Resilience Explored
Evaluating and Treating Veterans with TBI
Fitness after TBI
Surviving and Thriving after Injury
Strategize to Maximize (for optimal day-to-day functioning)
Concussion Treatment Options
1:00 p.m Survivors Panel
2:00 pm Recovery Research Panel |
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